WASHINGTON Nov 4 (Reuters) - The United States formally
denied a request on Wednesday to pause the review of the
proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, a decision expected to lead
to the project's rejection by the Obama administration.

TransCanada Corp's request to the State Department
for a delay was seen by many as an attempt to postpone the
decision until after President Barack Obama left office and a
new president more friendly to the plan took over in 2017.

The White House declined to comment on the State
Department's decision.

Secretary of State John Kerry has not given a timeline for
making a recommendation on the $8 billion project.

"The secretary believes that, out of respect for that
process and all the input that has gone into it, that it is the
most appropriate thing to keep that process in place, to
continue the review," State Department spokesman John Kirby told
a news conference on Wednesday.

The State Department must issue a recommendation because the
project crosses the border with Canada.

Since it was proposed seven years ago, the pipeline has been
the heart of a struggle between environmentalists opposed to oil
sands development and defenders of fossil fuels.
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